In the morning we set off for the port 30 minutes away from our hotel, where it turned out that our ferry (the only ferry that runs towards Bohol island), broke down, has not been running since yesterday, and it is not known when it will be repaired. Together with a group of people who were in an identical situation, we spontaneously decided to look for another way. We went to a second port from which we could sail in the opposite direction, and after 24 hours of many buses and ferries, we arrived on Siquijor Island. Or at least Gosia arrived, Raphaël additionally sailed to the town of Dumaguete to fix his laptop and go to the doctor, but without success.
Our first night’s stay was at the paradise cottage “Islanders Paradise Beach” on the very beach in the northern part of the island. Surrounded by lush greenery, sand and water. Due to the fact that we lost one night through a transportation problem we stayed in the paradise cottage only one night, but we managed to enjoy the beach and a very good restaurant “Ayans Local food”.
The next day we moved to the south end of the island to the cottage “Thornton’s Sea View Cafe,” where we spent a few days and found it to be an ideal place to enjoy sunsets and remote work and play Mancala.
We started from the observation tower in Mt. Bandilaan National Park. Many stairs were rewarded with a view of the entire island. On the way back we stopped at a butterfly sanctuary. The owner participate in the rescue and preservation of butterflies, their care and a large number of them are released back into the wild.
The next day was mostly spent at Tubod beach, where there was a marine sanctuary. At the entrance to the beach, we were greeted by a Filipino man who offered to rent snorkeling equipment for a nominal fee. Raphaël unfortunately couldn’t dive due to ear problems, but Gosia managed to see a lot of the underwater world and even a sea turtle.
The next day we visited the Lugnason and Cambugahay waterfalls and stopped to admire the Old Enchanted Balete Tree, where an additional attraction was the fish, large fish acting as a foot spa (eating your feet that you put in the water). On the way along the coast, we stopped at the famous Pitogo cliff, which reminded us a bit of Portugal.
After exploring the entire island full of smiling Filipinos, amazing nature and crystal clear water, it was time to leave the island. We took a ferry to the island of Bohol to the port of Tagbilaran and stayed one night at the charming hostel “Peaceland”. We met a couple of people traveling solo in the Philippines and exchanged our impressions so far.
First thing in the morning, we had a flight from Panglao to Manila, our last stop in the Philippines.